The Election Tribunal in Niger state has nullified the victory of Murtala Badaru in the last general election on the grounds that he is underage,Vanguard reports.
play
APC Lawmaker, Murtala Badaru
The Election Tribunal in Niger state has nullified the victory of Murtala Badaru in the last general election on the grounds that he is underage,Vanguard reports.
Badaru contested the elections to represent Suleja constituency in the Niger state House of Assembly on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and was declared the winner after supposedly polling more votes to defeat Shaibu Iya of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The PDP candidate, however, challenged the election of Badaru at the election tribunal on the grounds of certificate forgery and being underage.
READ MORE: > 'I don't care about your politics' - Asantehene to Ghanaians
But in a ruling yesterday, October 6, Olatunde Oshodi, the chairman of the tribunal, said Badaru was not found guilty of certificate forgery as alleged by the petitioner.
However, he nullified the election on the grounds that Badaru has not attained the constitutional age of 30 years, required to be a lawmaker.
The chairman of the tribunal ordered the Independent National Electoral Commisssion (INEC) to conduct fresh elections within 90 days.
But reacting shortly after, Chris Osuagwu, counsel to Badaru, told journalists that his client would appeal the judgment.
RELATED: Voter register demo Submitting a petition is not a shouting game - EC boss to LMVC
The annulment of Badaru’s election comes just days after the election tribunal in Taraba state nullified the victory of Senator Bashir Marafa in the 2015 general election.
Credit: naij.com
